To improve workflow on medical imaging devices, in particular on large imaging machines such as computed tomography scanners, PET/CT scanners, SPECT/CT scanners, magnetic resonance tomography scanners and similar, components such as e.g. a camera, in particular an optical camera, will be increasingly used for patient monitoring or display devices which provide the patient with visual information or show film sequences.
To obtain an image of a region of interest of the patient, the patient is positioned on the transfer plate and moved together with the transfer plate into an imaging area of the medical imaging device such that the region of interest of the patient is disposed in the imaging area. The imaging area can be covered at least from above. In particular, the imaging area can be formed by a tunnel-like aperture. This places significant requirements on the disposition of the components.
For example, a camera is designed to optically capture a patient, both when the latter is still positioned in front of the imaging area and also when the patient has been moved somewhat further into the imaging area. Conversely, the patient must be able to see a display device from the recumbent position both when the patient's head is in front of the imaging area and also when it is in the imaging area.
The particular disadvantage of installing these components in the conventional manner on a wall or ceiling of the examination room in which the medical imaging device is disposed is the large amount of space required for installation and the increased cable lengths, as it is necessary to run cables for data and/or power transmission from and to the components through the floor and wall up to the ceiling.
Alternative mounting facilities for the display device are disposed directly at the head end of the transfer plate, which, however, likewise has two disadvantages, namely that they can only be used there for “head-first” positioned patients and that they are an obstacle to examinations in the head area of the patient, i.e. they would have to be mounted and dismounted depending on the clinical application.
It is also known to dispose microphones and loudspeakers in the imaging area, in particular in the tunnel-like aperture, for communication between the patient and a medical imaging device user. The problem here is that microphones which are optimized for the direction profile of the patient located in the imaging area are inadequately suitable for communication with a patient or user located in front of the imaging area, and microphones having a less target-oriented characteristic are more prone to interference. Therefore, in a conventional medical imaging device, additional microphones are required for improved communication with a patient or user located in front of the imaging area.
Modern systems for planning needle paths for interventions (hereinafter referred to as laser-based intervention systems) generally use lasers which indicate the point of insertion and/or insertion direction. Laser systems are also used in radiation therapy planning in order to enable particular slice planes or points on the patient to be marked. A projection device of this kind must be disposed such that the laser can be projected onto the patient as unobstuctedly as possible. The projection device must allow highly precise marking at a predefined distance in front of the imaging area. For example, in the case of a computed tomography scanner, marking parallel to the scanning plane may be required. For this purpose, projection devices are known which are mounted on the wall of the examination room, which means that additional installation work is required.